TescoGate will lead to 'seismic change' in retailer/supplier relations, says Angela Mount

ByGemma McKenna

Published: 17 October, 2014

Ex-Somerfield head wine buyer Angela Mount says the Tesco accounting scandal has lifted the lid on how retailers treat suppliers and given suppliers the "strength to speak out".

Ex-Somerfield head wine buyer Angela Mount says the Tesco accounting scandal has lifted the lid on how retailers treat suppliers and given suppliers the "strength to speak out".

Mount, who worked at Somerfield during a profits warning, came under intense pressure to bring in extra monies in that period. She now says there will be a "seismic change" in how retailers and suppliers do business.

She added that the sheer "scale of this investigation", would likely lead to a call from suppliers for a review of the Code of Practice.

What's more, she said there will likely be a call for far further clarity on supplier/retailer contracts and the details and timings of payments, as happened when she was at Somerfield.

"I believe suppliers will support that but I still maintain that suppliers know what they're getting into when they begin to trade with major retailers. What is wrong, is when pressure is applied to change the goalposts, linked to late payments of invoices and pull forward of agreed trading deals.

"Because there is such intense scrutiny, I can't see how the investigation won't escalate into an industry-wide one. This will give suppliers the strength to stand up against unreasonable demands .

"It is going to cause a seismic change in supplier/retailer relations, with a far more open understanding of trading agreements going forward.

"This has finally taken the lid off a situation that many suppliers have complained about for years, but haven't dared mention. Now they have more strength and conviction to speak out," she said.